This invention relates to fillable dispensing receptacles, and in particular to a receptacle having a portion formed for containing a liquid to be dispensed subsequent to another liquid contained in the receptacle. The invention has particular utility as a nursing or baby bottle for dispensing a mouth cleansing agent, such as water, after the remainder of the bottle has been consumed, but also has utility for other purposes, including mouth cleansing for adults.
The typical baby bottle has a single chamber, where liquid is introduced and then the contents are consumed by a baby or other individual utilizing the bottle. There are many different kinds of baby bottles, including bottle holders with disposable flexible pouches and rigid bottles that are used and reused many times.
One concern with infants and young children when using baby bottles is to make sure that, to the extent possible, tooth decay is avoided. When a sugared beverage is consumed by a baby or young child, often the remnants remain resident in the mouth, and can contribute to accumulation of bacteria and subsequent tooth decay. Thus, mouth rinsing is used on occasion, usually until a child is of sufficient maturity to engage in tooth brushing.
Various structures have been developed to promote oral hygiene in combination with a baby bottle. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,995 discloses a multiple reservoir nursing bottle which, when using a mouth cleansing agent, is switched between reservoirs to introduce water or other cleansing following consumption of the liquid beverage in the bottle. Other similar structures are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,666,345; 5,353,964; 5,960,971; 5,897,007; 5,617,966 and 5,060,811, and a method of infant feeding having two milk products is disclosed in published Application No. US 2002/0035997 A1.
Thrush is a painful bacterial infection of the mouth and throat, which is caused by remnants of infant formula and milk remaining in the mouth after consumption. The present invention is designed to prevent that.